The rise of YouTube golf is a polarizing topic in the sport.
“I’m not of that generation,” Rory McIlroy said at the Players Championship. “I’d much rather watch pure competitive—I’d much rather watch this golf tournament on Saturday and Sunday than watch YouTube golf.”
LPGA Hall of Famer Lydia Ko feels differently.
In fact, some of golf’s most popular entertainers were a big part of her preparation for this week’s U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills Golf Course in Wisconsin.
“In all honesty,” the 28-year-old said, “I watched some YouTube golf before coming here and seeing how they played and just kind of get an idea of what the golf course is like. Obviously, it plays very differently compared to when the men played here in 2017. You don’t really know until you get here.”
Who did she check out?
“I watched the Bryan Bros,” Ko said, “and I think Wesley Bryan was trying to get his revenge from 2017. And I think it’s the series where they do it with Grant Horvat, and it’s going to major championship courses.”
Ko added that she got into YouTube because of her husband, but “won't be shy to say I watch it on my own now.”
And she knows her preparation method differed from most of her competitors.
“It’s probably not the preparation that many of the other players did,” she said, “but it was just a good way for me to kind of see the golf course.”
Maybe it’ll help her win the U.S. Women’s Open for the first time, and her fourth major championship.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Lydia Ko Shared Unique Preparation Method for U.S. Women’s Open.
